


Charlie. Romeo. Uniform. Sierra. Hotel.

by fettuccine_alfreylo



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Airplanes, Airports, Alternate Universe - British, Alternate Universe - Flight Attendants, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Flight Attendant Hux, Fluff, Happy Ending, Humor, Kissing, Misunderstandings, One Shot, Pilot Rey (Star Wars), Pilots, Reyux, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-10
Updated: 2019-10-10
Packaged: 2020-11-28 21:38:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,705
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20973458
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fettuccine_alfreylo/pseuds/fettuccine_alfreylo
Summary: Flight attendant Armitage Hux has never had a crush in his life.Until he hears Captain Rey Jackson give her cabin address and he's instantly smitten.Only problem is, he's rubbish at flirting.And totally unaware that she likes him back.





	Charlie. Romeo. Uniform. Sierra. Hotel.

**Author's Note:**

  * For [sunshineflying](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunshineflying/gifts).

***

Taj has never had a crush in his life. 

He grew up in a very strict all-boys boarding school and whenever he went home for summer holiday, his father kept him busy. Rugby. Cricket. Lessons in Chinese, Russian, Spanish and Arabic. No free time, certainly no time for a social life, and so he never experienced what boys his age did. Girlfriends, boyfriends. School dances, drunken first kisses, fumbles in the back seat of cars. He was too busy being groomed for the life of a politician. Even though he didn’t want it. 

Eventually, he worked up the courage to throw all of it away - his promising career in Parliament, his inheritance, the smidge of respect his father still held for him - in order to live simply, just as he’d always wanted. Cut off from his family's wealth, he found a temporary job as an airline steward until he could get back on his feet. To his surprise, this career stuck and what’s more, he was good at it. Passengers always said he had a calming presence, and he put his language skills to good use during international flights. 

He became far happier with his life than he had ever been growing up - but he still never caught up in terms of dating. Relationships. _ Women_. Now, at the age of thirty-two, he didn’t see the point in any of that, as solitary as he was, and had fully convinced himself that he was asexual or something similar...until he heard _ her _for the first time. 

“Hullo, everyone. This is your captain speaking. Dreary morning as we’re headed out of London but then you already know that, don’t you? That’s why you’re on this flight. You finally said ENOUGH of English weather and decided to book a trip to Florida. Good decision. It’s lovely there this time of year, if you can manage to get past the snakes and alligators that swarm towards you as you disembark. Nothing to be done about that, I’m afraid. This flight is ten hours long though, so hopefully that’ll give you ample time to prepare to wrangle Floridian wildlife.”

The passengers had nearly pissed themselves laughing at all her jokes, and even Taj found himself cracking a smile, too. Most pilots at Lucas Air were older, no-nonsense, and straight to the point when it came to their cabin addresses. But this, _ this _pilot - she was young and bubbly with a sense of humour to boot. 

And when he finally got a look at her, he realised — no, he was decidedly _ not _ asexual, and yes, he was capable of having a crush. Because she was _ everything _ he hadn’t known he wanted. Brunette, hazel eyes, sunkissed skin, an infectious smile.

Way, way out of his league. So far out of his league, he has no idea what he’d even say or do if they were to speak one-on-one, in private. 

So, naturally, he starts to avoid her like the plague. 

***

Rey is 90% sure that the redheaded steward hates her. 

Actually, more like 95%. After the most recent flight when he had practically ignored her, that percentage seems more likely. 

It shouldn’t bother her so much, but it does. She isn’t entirely sure how she developed the pathological need for everyone to like her - not enough love as a child, maybe. Abandonment issues, too many foster homes back-to-back. Whatever the reason, she’s managed to befriend all of her co-workers. All of the fellow captains and first officers that cycle in and out of the hub in London. The air traffic controllers. The baggage handlers. The flight attendants. 

...All with the exception of _ one person_, and she just can’t get over it. 

It’s not like she even sees him that much! Lucas Air is big enough that any given flight may have different crew members each time, even though his base is definitely in London like hers. But on the rare occasions they do cross paths, it takes her _ days _afterward to move on with her life. 

Because she’s _ tried _to be friendly with him. She’s tried to be nice. She has! But nothing has ever, ever worked. He’s as prickly as a cactus. 

“You alright over there, Sunshine? You’re pretty quiet today and we’re going to Paris. Don’t you love Paris?” Finn asks her. 

Finn is her best mate. They’d met during the 18 month long pilot training and, to their delight, had both been hired by Lucas Air around the same time. Although Finn is still a senior first officer, he hasn’t once begrudged her for her recent promotion to captain. He’s unfailingly supportive and she always loves going on flights with him. If there’s anyone who’d understand her frustration, it’s him, so she decides to let it out. 

“You know Armitage Hux? From cabin crew?”

“The ginger? Looks like he has a permanent stick up his arse?”

Rey snorts. “That’s the one.”

“He’s been on a few of my flights, but I can’t say I know a lot about him.”

“Hm. Okay.”

“Why?” 

Rey stares resolutely ahead, focused on the bright blue sky in front of her. “He’s...a tough nut to crack.”

“You don’t say,” Finn deadpans.

“I’ve been trying to get on his good side for AGES and nothing. If I wasn’t his superior, I don’t think he’d even give me the time of day. He has to interact with me some, but even then he makes me feel like...like I’m a bad smell he can’t get rid of.”

Finn scoffs. “Oh, come on!”

“I’m serious Finn! On one flight it even seemed like he was actually holding his breath when I passed him by on the way to the cockpit.” 

That time had hurt especially. Rey had been feeling particularly pretty due to her wearing a new lipstick and perfume she’d snagged for half price in the airport's Sephora. And to board the plane an hour later, only to be met by Mr. Grouchy Ginger, had really done a number on her self-esteem. She doesn’t smell that bad, does she? Rey takes a whiff under her underarm, assessing. No. Just deodorant and cherry blossoms like her perfume. The perfume that _ someone _had turned his posh nose up at. 

Finn tsks in sympathy. “I wouldn’t take it personally, hun. You know how cabin crew can be sometimes.”

“No, I don’t! I’ve never had a problem with cabin crew! They’re all lovely to me and I try to be just as lovely back. It’s just - _ him._” Rey grits her teeth. “Why can’t he just be NICE?” 

“Corner him when he’s off duty or something. Then your crush _ can’t _ escape you and pretend like he has some important task to do like hoovering the aircraft.”

“He is _ not _my crush,” Rey adamantly denies - but when the mental image of Armitage Hux hoovering immediately pops into her head, the starchy white fabric of his uniform rolled up to his forearms as he puts his back into cleaning - she grudgingly accepts that she’s just told an outright lie to her friend. 

Though, maybe Finn does have a point. Approaching him when he’s not working - when they can talk as two people, not as pilot and flight attendant - that might do the trick. That might get him to like her. And Rey can be very, very persuasive when she wants to be. 

*** 

It’s 3:30 in the morning. 

Technically, Taj doesn’t have to report for duty until a quarter past four for the early morning flight. But on days like today, he likes to take his time. There’s a small little café called Maz’s at the tail-end of the airport, right before gates C-66 and C-65. His flight to Italy just so happens to be at C-63, so he won’t have to rush at all. He can just sit here, relax, enjoy his almond milk latte, and catch up on a bit of reading. 

Or so he thinks. 

“Hiya! Is this seat taken?” 

Oh no. _ No no_. He knows that voice. That peppy, over enthusiastic voice. It’s _ her_. She’s one of the pilots on the flight today, of course she is, he’d triple checked his assignation well ahead of time - but he hadn’t expected her to be here this early_. _And he definitely hadn’t expected her to approach him out of the blue. Most pilots mind their own business off duty, or give him a quick nod of the head and carry on their way. Not her, apparently. Of course not. 

Lowering his book slowly, Taj swallows thickly as he takes her in. She’s wearing a bright red lip today, her perfectly white teeth visible as she smiles at him. Why is her smile so blooming _ bright? _ And that’s not all about her that’s distracting. She’s styled her hair into three buns - is that within regulation? - and she’s given her standard uniform a bit of Autumnal cheer by wearing a tie with smiling pumpkins on it. _ Pumpkins_. On anyone else it would look absurd but on her it’s...adorable. She’s adorable. 

...and he’s just staring at her, not having said a word. Crumbs. 

“I, uh —” He starts, entirely unsure of what to say. The polite thing to do would tell her that no, the other seat at the table isn’t taken, would she like to sit down? But then if he said that he’d have to engage in _ smalltalk _ to her, and that sends a shiver up his spine. Smalltalk with passengers? Completely fine. He can and does do that all day. Smalltalk with co-workers? Not his favourite, but he abides it. Smalltalk with his _ crush? _Absolutely not. He can’t. He won’t. 

“I wonder when ol’ George will finally get his act together and give us the next installment?” she grins, her nose wrinkling as she does. Does she have _ freckles _on her nose? God help him. He needs to get out of here. 

“...What?” Taj stands from his chair, nearly toppling his coffee over his lap in his haste. 

She gestures to his book. “_A Dance With Dragons_. That came out in what, 2011? I’m dying to read _ The Winds of Winter_, aren’t you?” 

_ Dying _is a strong word, he’s not a rabid fan of the books or HBO series by any means so he reckons he’ll be patient to wait for the next book after finishing this one, but saying all of that will only prolong their conversation and that can’t happen. So instead what comes out is a terse:

“Yes. Excuse me.” 

With that, he takes his belongings and coffee and walks as fast as his legs will take him to the nearest loo, not daring to risk a glance behind him to see her reaction. 

To his growing horror, these chance meetings continue in frequency for the next few months. 

She attempts another interaction in one of the airport’s food courts, where she finds him halfway through his favourite chicken chow mein. He hates to waste food, absolutely hates it, but he’s all too willing to part with his unfinished meal that day. 

The next time, it’s in the airport car park after a particularly grueling return trip from Singapore. She waves at him, looking like she’s about to come over and have a chat. Taj hits his head on the roof of his car and bumps his gangly knees on the steering wheel in his hurry to get inside and speed off. 

The worst time though, the _ worst_, is when he’s not even at work, but in a Tesco. 

He’s in the middle of inspecting a banana bunch for bruises when, out of the corner of his eye, he sees someone in white sidle up beside him. He doesn’t think anything of it at first, but then he smells it. 

Cherry blossoms. 

And then he hears her voice. 

“Well this is a surprise! I wouldn’t have taken you for a Tesco kind of guy. You seem like you’d shop at Waitrose.” 

He’s so startled, he drops his bananas on the floor. Quickly, he drops to his knees to pick them up - at the same time that she does, and they knock their heads together. 

“Ow!”

“Shit! Fucking hell!”

He’s never heard her swear before, but like everything else about her, she makes it far cuter than it has any right to be. And in her white pea coat and knit hat, she looks like a Christmas angel - a Christmas angel with a surprisingly dirty mouth. 

Head throbbing and ears ringing, Taj rubs at his temple where he’d bumped it against hers, feeling himself flush all over from embarrassment...and then for a _ very _different reason when he realises she’s grasping a rather large banana in her small hands. 

He takes the banana bunch back from her quickly and stands, his own hands shaking. 

She clears her throat, doing the same. “Do you live around here, then?”

He does. Apparently she does, too. He’s never run into her before outside of the airport, Thank _ God_, and he supposes there are worse places than this she could’ve found him. At the gym, when his face goes as red as a tomato. At the park, where he likes to feed the geese on Sundays. At the newly opened cat café near his place that he visited today before running errands. He hasn’t committed to adopting a cat just yet but there’s one he’s got his eye on with gorgeous ginger fur. He’d held her today, even going so far as to kiss the top of her fluffy head, and he shudders to think of this woman - _ Jackson_, Rey Jackson is her name - coming across him in such a way. 

“Yes,” he replies to her question, stilted, and tries to think of a way to escape...as her _ hand _comes up to his chest. Paralysed, unable to move, he watches as her small and nimble fingers pluck something from the front of his coat, holding it up for him to see. He swears he can feel the impression of her touch through all the layers of clothing that he’s wearing. 

“Who does this belong to?” she asks. 

It’s an orange cat hair. 

“Um. A Cat,” he states the obvious, grimacing at how stupid that sounds as he looks over her shoulder to the checkout queue up front. If he made up an excuse as to why he needs to leave the store right here, right now, in the middle of shopping - would she believe him? Probably not, but there’s not an awful lot of options, being that she’s already found him, and—

“Listen,” she starts, and he pulls his gaze back to her, finding her chewing on her pink bottom lip. Unbidden, his mind wonders what it would feel like to have those lips pressed up against his, and he gets so distracted by that errant thought that he completely misses out on the second part of what she says until he realises she’s staring up at him with a serious expression, probably waiting for an answer. 

“I’m sorry?” he blinks dumbly. 

“Do you have a problem with me? Because - I make it a habit to ensure that I’m on good terms with everyone at work so if we aren’t, if there was some kind of misunderstanding between us...I want to know how to fix it. So...do we?”

Dread fills in his stomach and his mind screams at him to assure her that no, he doesn’t have a problem with her at all! That it’s all him and his blasted nerves and his hopeless skills with women, that it’s actually the opposite - that he likes her _ a lot_. Much more than is appropriate for a flight attendant to like an airline captain. He likes her so much that he can’t stop thinking about her, about what she’s doing outside of work, her hobbies and interests, her passions and childhood stories. 

Instead, what he blurts out is:

“Yes. We do.”

He doesn’t know why he says it. There’s no logical reason. It’s entirely untrue. And as he watches her face crumble into a hurt expression, Taj knows that he’s made an error, but this isn’t so easily solved as when a passenger spills their drink on a flight or when a child needs a biohazard bag for the turbulence. This is an outright mess, and he’s well out of his depth here. So he just—

Drops his grocery basket, the produce in it tumbling out onto the floor. Then, unable to meet her eyes, he flees from the store as fast as he can. 

When he gets home to his small and tidy flat, he stays there for the rest of his time off work, not once venturing outside for fear that he’ll run into her and make a muck of things all over again. 

***

Rey is drunk. 

She’s in an unfamiliar city, to boot. She’s flown to New York a number of times, but has never had to stay here longer than a night or two. There’s a horrible snow storm on the Northeastern part of the United States, and all flights are cancelled until the weather clears up. Probably in the next couple of days. But she’ll be missing Christmas at home with everyone. Finn, Rose, Poe. And Christmas is her favourite. Anyone who’s seen her collection of Christmas ties that she wears to work all throughout the month of December would know that. It’s her _ favourite_. And instead of spending it surrounded by friends - her own version of family - she’s across the Atlantic ocean and alone on Christmas Eve. Trying to console herself with sushi and saké. 

Both of which are admittedly _ very _good. But they don’t solve everything. Not the loneliness, and especially not the problem that’s been plaguing her for what seems like forever at this point. 

Rey angrily stabs at her spicy tuna roll with her chopsticks. 

Ever since that interaction in Tesco at the beginning of the month, she hasn’t been on any flights with Armitage Hux. Which is for the best. She’s still smarting - _ still! _\- from his admission that he has a problem with her. At least he was honest, she’d rather him be honest than harbor a secret resentment - but holy hell, had that hurt. 

She pushes her plate of sushi away, feeling tears start to prick at the corner of her eyes. 

She’d _ tried _to get to know him. She’d taken Finn’s advice and approached him several times, only to be rebuffed at every turn. Maybe she should’ve taken all of those cold shoulders as an answer. Maybe she should’ve just left him alone to his stuck-up ways. 

Yet...there was something about him, something that made her think he wasn’t nearly as crotchety as he first appeared. The way he’d sipped his small cup of coffee at that airport café, smiling to himself as he flipped a page of his book. How he’d chowed down on that airport Chinese food like it was the best damn thing he’d ever eaten. How he’d lovingly inspected those bananas in the supermarket, checking for any blemishes before he placed them in his basket…

Rey scoffs to herself, pushing away from her seat. 

Ridiculous. She’s being ridiculous. And she’d been wrong about him. He’s a miserable person with a miserable personality to match and she shouldn’t let him rain on her parade, or take up free rent in her mind when it was clear from the start that he never spared her a thought. But here she was again. _ Still _ thinking about him. Still caught up on him. Like some schoolgirl with a crush and she is decidedly _ not _ that. She’s 28. She earned her dream job and her life is in order. She has her own place, she has a great group of fellow pilots-turned-friends. She’s never been one to yearn after any man, and she’s not going to now. No matter how _ sexy _he is with a bit of facial hair. No matter how gorgeous his green-blue eyes look. No matter how chiselled his jawline is, or how soft his hair probably feels…

_ Dammit. _Enough! It’s Christmas, the best time of the year and she’s getting worked up over a Scrooge. 

Rey throws a wad of American dollars down on the table for a tip, probably too much. She’s never been good with exchange rates but it doesn’t matter. Her waiter had been nice and she’s ready to leave and go back to her hotel for the evening. Maybe she’ll have a nice bath, that could cheer her up. Or maybe order a cheeky late night treat from room service. Or maybe…

The bell above the door to the restaurant dings just as Rey turns to leave, and her breath is knocked from her body as she sees who is standing in the doorway. 

_ Him! _ What on earth is _ he _doing here? 

He must’ve been on another flight to New York and now he’s stranded here, too. He’s almost certainly in the same hotel as her. Lucas Air always uses the same hotel chains when employees need lodging. That would explain why he’s shown up to this place for a bite to eat, as the hotel is right around the corner. From the looks of it, he’s just as caught off guard by her as she is by him. He’s probably going to turn around and leave, as he always does when she’s nearby. Well, he needn’t bother now. She’s on her way out and he doesn’t have to worry about her ruining his meal with her objectionable presence. 

He already looks ready to bolt but she shoulders past him, not saying a word. He doesn’t deserve it. 

She’s halfway out the door when she hears it. It’s quiet, muttered under his breath, but she still does. 

“Happy Christmas.” 

Oh, that does it. 

Seeing red, Rey pulls him out the door again by his arm, which feels surprisingly muscular and strong beneath his coat. Then, she pushes him up against the brick wall outside, snow falling down around them. She pokes her finger into his chest, keeping him pinned in place when he tries to push away. Her East End upbringing crops up in her voice like it always does when she’s angry or drunk. Normally she _ hates _it but she uses it to her advantage now, wanting to see him squirm.

“You’ve got a lot of fucking nerve, mate! ‘Happy Christmas’? What the hell is wrong with you? You can barely tolerate me and now you’re wishing me HAPPY CHRISTMAS?! Fuck off! I’ve been nothing but nice to you and you always, _ always _ have such a nasty look on your face when we see each other, and it makes me feel like shit! And I’ve _ been _ feeling like shit for the last month thanks to you! Wanker! Have you ever thought about smiling for once? About at least _ pretending _to be nice? Huh?”

He opens and closes his mouth like a fish, and Rey feels a thrill of satisfaction at the sight...until the gravity of what she’s done hits her. She’s practically _ assaulted _an employee! He could go straight to H.R. about this! Well, not straight away, seeing as they’re on another continent, but still! What had she been thinking, yelling in his face? Pushing him up against a wall? She’s never done that to anyone. Not the bullies she faced in secondary school, not her disagreeable foster “siblings” whenever she was placed somewhere new, not even the men who leer whenever she goes out for drinks with friends. 

She could get fired over this. At the very least, suspended. And she feels awful. 

“I’m - I’m sorry,” she whispers, and she lets go of him quickly. 

But then..._ he _ grabs _ her. _

Flipping them around, so she’s up against the wall and he’s crowding in her personal space, and her heart beats wildly in her chest as she looks up at him. She’s not scared, though. No. In fact, she’s...she’s _ excited_, holding her breath in anticipation. 

He stares back at her with an unreadable expression, tiny snowflakes in his blonde eyelashes...and then his gaze darts down to her lips. 

In the blink of an eye, she’s kissing him. She tangles her fingers in his hair which is so, _ so _soft, softer than she could have ever imagined. And he...he’s kissing her back. Gently, not nearly as rough or as rushed and to her embarrassment, she whines low in her throat in frustration.

She wrenches her mouth apart from his, finally drawing in breath, trying to find the strength to say the words...but he unexpectedly steals them right from her. 

“You have..._no _ idea how long I’ve wanted to do that.” 

That’s the most words she’s heard out of him at once, and that in itself is a marvel, then she catches up and realises...he’s felt the same way? 

About her? 

This entire time? 

“Why didn’t you ever say anything?” she asks, her voice sounding demanding to her own ears, but he just smiles. Like he had that day she’d found him reading. 

“Truthfully, I’m, uh —” He cuts off, swallowing thickly, and even though it’s dark out, flurries of snow swirling around them, she can tell that his cheeks are bright pink. It’s like the supermarket all over again but this time, she doesn’t mistake this flushing for anger. He’s...embarrassed. Bashful. Had she been misreading his expressions all along? Is he really just shy? An awful flirt? 

“It doesn’t matter,” she cuts in, grabbing hold of his gloved hand with hers. “Let’s go back inside where it’s warm.” 

*** 

Taj is so hungry but he can barely eat, he’s so focused on her. 

Rey is a talkative one. She gestures with her hands a lot, and he reckons it’s even more pronounced than usual since she’s been drinking, but he finds it incredibly endearing. Just like the rest of her. 

“And then that day, do you remember? I was running a bit late so I came on board after you. I was wearing this new perfume and - well, I was convinced I had gravely offended you or something, because you had this look on your face.”

She mimics what looks like a pained, constipated expression, and Taj bursts out laughing. 

“Yeah, that’s...that’s what I look like when I’m trying really, really hard to concentrate despite distractions.”

“Distractions? What kind of distractions?” She smirks at him, batting her lashes, and steals a piece of edamame off his plate. Okay, yes, she is _ definitely _ flirting with him. He’s picking this up rather quickly, thank the Lord, and even though he feels ridiculous flirting back with her, he does it. 

“Distractions like...a pretty pilot who wears a different colour of lipstick each flight. Who smells like cherry blossoms. Who owns a worrying amount of reindeer ties.” 

It’s her turn to blush and he feels an absurd sense of pride surge through him, to be the cause of such a wonderful reaction. If this is what he’s been missing...he is truly, truly grateful that Rey Jackson has come into his life and slapped him in the face with the force of her upfront personality, because there’s no way he would’ve been able to approach her himself. He would’ve never been able to know how petal soft her lips are. How silky smooth her hair feels. How she eats like a starving man, or the way her eyes glitter when she’s teasing. 

“That’s _ captain _to you. I have four stripes to show for it,” she sasses. “And I’m very proud of my ties, thank you very much. I’ll have you know I get many compliments about them.”

“My apologies, Captain. It won’t happen again.” 

She grins at that, and he’s burning up all over again because of it, but it’s a nice sort of burning. The kind that warms him from the inside out. The kind that makes him forget they’re in the middle of a wintry blizzard across the pond on Christmas Eve. That doesn’t matter now. He doesn’t care one whit how long it will take to get home from where they’re at.

Because he’s got a crush. 

And, miraculously...his crush likes him back. 

**Author's Note:**

> This is for [sunshineflying](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunshineflying), who won an internal competition in Dadam for the month of September. She requested a Reyux airline AU so I decided to try that out!! Hope you liked it Tiff ❤️️ 
> 
> Please disregard any glaring aviation or British inaccuracies. I used to write Sherlock and Cabin Pressure fics so like...I *kind* of remember some things? But not everything 😂 For those wondering, the title is "CRUSH" via the NATO phonetic alphabet 🤓 As I understand it, those in aviation use this system so words are properly pronounced and understood by air traffic controllers and pilots despite language differences. 
> 
> Thank you to [Michelle](https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkKnightDarkSide) for beta'ing this for me!
> 
> [My twitter](https://twitter.com/alfreylo).


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